City seeks residents’ input on spending $3.5M for two parks

Published 7:00 pm, Sunday, April 11, 2010

Conroe residents living near the Martin Luther King Park Sports Complex and Kasmiersky Park have a chance to say how they want $3.5 million in city funds to be spent on those facilities.

The city will host public hearings through April 22, with each meeting focusing on one of the parks. A meeting from 6:30-8:30 p.m. today for input on Kasmiersky Park will be at the park, located at 889 Old Magnolia Road. Should it rain, the meeting will move to the Dean Towery Service Center, located at 401 Sgt. Ed Holcomb Blvd.

A meeting on the Martin Luther King Park Sports Complex, located at 801 S. First St., will be from 6:30-8:30 p.m. April 20, or at the Oscar Johnson Jr. Center, located at 100 Park Place, in case of inclement weather. One more meeting on Kasmiersky Park will be from 6:30-8:30 p.m. April 22.

“Funding is available in our Capital Improvement Projects fund for improvements at the parks, and we want to get some input from citizens to see what improvements are needed,” said Mike Riggens, director of Parks and Recreation for the city.

The CIP fund has $1.5 million available for the MLK Park Sports Complex and $2 million for Kasmiersky Park, Riggens said. Design and engineering plans would be completed this year, with construction to begin in the 2010-11 fiscal year and completed by late 2011.

“Kasmiersky Park has a skate park that’s gotten so old it’s gotten dangerous,” Riggens said. “The skate park is currently made of wood that’s deteriorating.”

The skate park would be renovated with either concrete or modular (moveable) features made of metal or other materials, he said. Other potential improvements including additional parking, pathways and lighting for the park’s large, multipurpose sports field.

The 10-acre park also features a pavilion, restrooms, a play structure, a half-mile jogging and walking trail and picnic tables, according to information at cityofconroe.org.

The Martin Luther King Park Sports Complex has three baseball fields, restrooms, concession stands and a play structure.

Because of changing demographics in the area, Riggens said, at least one of the baseball fields could be converted to a multipurpose field for soccer or football.

One meeting on the sports complex has been held, and Riggens said some neighbors did walk over to participate.

“One suggestion was for a basketball court and a volleyball court, and other suggestions included trail accessibility and better lighting,” he said.